Professor Gomes will discuss the role of computer-mediated communication in the construction of diasporic identities among Goans. This is part of a broader project focused on the politics of culture among Goans, examining the trends and identity expressions that relate to the re-establishment of Indian "roots"and heritage. Professor Gomes is a Malaysian-born Australian of Goan Indian descent. He teaches anthropology at La Trobe University in Melbourne, Australia. He has researched and published extensively on Malaysia's indigenous peoples (Orang Asli), focusing on demographic patterns, ecological issues, and political economy. Apart from his Goa project, he is currently writing a book, partly autobiographical, on cultural politics in Malaysia.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) which is the country's market regulator has recently released its draft rules on corporate governance. Mr. L.K. Singhvi will discuss the SEBI draft. The Securities and Exchange Board of India is India's primary regulator of financial markets. A member of the Indian Civil Service, Mr. Singhvi heads SEBI's Investigation, Enforcement and Surveillance Departments and its Derivative and Venture Capital Fund Departments. Prior to joining SEBI, he held positions in the Indian Revenue Service and the Income Tax Department. When India began reform in 1991, Mr.Singhvi undertook the important assignment of the Director of Enforcement of Foreign Exchange Regulations and was also a member of the committee for dilution of Foreign Exchange Regulations. Mr. Singhvi has participated both in national and international conferences especially in the area of capital market and is also an active member of the Asia Pacific Regional Committee on Enforcement.

Air Chief Marshal S.K. Mehra will be discussing the formulation of the doctrine by the National Security Advisory Board. Since it was made public, the Doctrine has received both domestic and international reactions. Air Chief Marshal Mehra will discuss these reactions as expressed in the media. While in the Service, Air Chief Marshal S.K. Mehra progressed from junior to middle levels in operational fighter units specializing in both air defence and strike roles, and commanded key operational squadrons and major Air Force fighter bases. The senior staff appointments held by him include Director of Air Staff Inspection, Director of Personnel (Officers), Assistant Chief of Air Staff (Operations), and Deputy Chief of the Air Staff. He held the appointment of Air Officer commanding-in-Chief, South Western Air Command with the responsibility of all air operations in the sector, prior to being appointed as the Chief of the Air Staff in 1988. He retired in 1991 on completion of the three-year tenure as the Air Chief. Presently, he is on the Governing Council of the Institute of Defence Studies and Analysis (IDSA), and a member of the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies-both located in New Delhi. He has also been nominated by the Government of India to the National Security Advisory Board.

Professor Jean-Luc Domenach is one of France's leading experts on China, and on Asia more broadly. His publications include works that have dealt successively with the internal and external politics of the People's Republic of China and with international relations in East Asia. His books include The Origins of the Great Leap Forward (1995); The Forgotten Gulag: China's Prison Camps (1992); Asian Communism: Dead or in Transition (1994); Asia Rediscovered (1997) and, most recently, Asia in Danger (1998). In addition to his academic writings, he is a regular columnist for two French dailies, La Croix and Ouest-France. He is also on the editorial and advisory boards of several scholarly journals, including the French Review of Political Science, International Politics, and Politics Abroad. Professor at the Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris, beginning in 1995 he became Scientific Director of the Fondation Nationale des Sciences Politiques, where he is also in charge of the Masters of Contemporary Asia Program. Jean-Luc Domenach is a knight of the National Order of Merit.

Traditionally, an entrepreneurial spirit has not been seen as something of much value in Japan. However, the Japanese government has undertaken a variety of short-term and long-term measures to revitalize the Japanese economy through creating new business opportunities and employment. Mr. Yoda's discussion will touch on the SBIR, the Japanese version of the Bayh-Dole Act, the revision of the Bankruptcy Act, the revision of the standard for accounting as well as the revision of patent law for research institutes at national universities. To further promote the development of new enterprises and support for their growth, tax provisions, such as the "Angel Tax", have been revised and the number of incubators available for new entrepreneurs to use are also subject to increase. Through the revision of patent law, the relationship between university research institutions and private businesses in Japan will become a key factor in Japan's revitalization. Expected results from these government strategies as well as some aspects of these revisions that need to be further considered will be discussed by Mr. Yoda along with his analysis of the potential role of the Japanese government in facilitating entrepreneurial links between Japan and Silicon Valley. Mr. Yoda serves as Chief Executive Director of the Japan External Trade Organization's (JETRO) San Francisco office, where he as served since 1997 as a liaison between the Japanese and the US business communities. His primary responsibility is implementing Japanese trade promotion programs and assisting US companies looking to enter the Japanese market. Previous to his assignment at JETRO San Francisco, Mr. Yoda spent 25 years working for the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) and other governmental organizations. Mr. Yoda has also served as Commercial and Economic Councilor for the Japanese Embassy in Ottawa, Canada (1991-94). Mr. Yoda received a BA degree in Law from Kyoto University. He frequently takes part in directing JETRO's trade promotion activities as well as promoting the Japanese market to U.S. business and community leaders.

The financial crisis of July 1997 in Asia was the cause of the fall of several large Japanese banks and securities in November 1997. Stabilizing policies for the financial sector introduced by Prime Minister Hashimoto were insufficient. Under the Obuchi administration two new monetary policies were introduced and a new committee was established to implement these policies instead of the Ministry of Finance. In October of 1998, Hakuo Yanagisawa became responsible for financial reform and was named the head of the committee for financial restructuring in December, 1998. Hakuo Yanagisawa made world headlines as a bold architect of financial reform in Japan by forcing mergers, closing banks, and pushing for strict new regulations during his tenure as Financial Reconstruction Minister in Prime Minister Obuchi's cabinet. Determined to make Japan's financial system more dynamic and efficient, his sweeping actions took many by surprise. But what are the results of his efforts? In his address, Yanagisawa will discuss the prospects for further economic and financial change in Japan and its impact internationally. Yanagisawa was Chairman of the Financial Reconstruction Commission of the Japanese Diet from December 1998 through October 1999. Prior to that he held several key policy-related posts including Director General of the National Land Agency since his election to the House of Representatives in 1980. He has also served with the Ministry of Finance and holds a law degree from the University of Tokyo.

Why do some regions seem more innovative then other regions? What is the secret of successful regions? Based on research in several innovative regions, Collaborative Economics has identified some of the factors that shape success. Doug Henton, President of Collaborative Economics based in Palo Alto will present results from the 2000 Index of Silicon Valley and the results of a recent study on Innovative Regions which analyzes trends in several American regions including Austin, Route 128, Northern Virginia, San Diego as well as Silicon Valley. Doug founded Collaborative Economics in July 1993 after a decade as assistant director of SRI International's Center for Economic Competitiveness. At SRI, Doug directed local strategy projects in diverse regions, including Tampa, Florida; Southern California; and Austin, Texas. He led major state-level strategy development projects in Arizona, Florida, and California, and provided consulting assistance to the President's Commission on Industrial Competitiveness, the Western Governors Association, the U.S. Department of Commerce, and the Appalachian Regional Commission. Internationally, Doug directed major projects on the economic future of Hong Kong, the technopolis strategy in Japan, and regional development in China. Doug holds a bachelor's degree in political science and economics from Yale University and a master of public policy degree from the University of California, Berkeley.

Tatsuo Yamada is one of Japan's foremost experts on China's modern political history and Sino-Japanese Relations. He has written numerous articles and edited important volumes on the Republican Period, including works on the internal politics and ideology of the Nationalist Party and the relationship between the Nationalists and the Communists. He is editor of the book 150 Years of Sino-Japanese Relations, has written on Japanese studies on modern Chinese history, and on current political developments in the PRC. Professor of Political Science at Keio University since 1977, he has served as Director of the Center for Area Studies and as Dean of the Faculty of Law at Keio.

The great economist, Alfred Marshall, said of industrial districts: "The mysteries of the trade...are as it were in the air...." This seminar reports on a project that addresses the "mysteries" of the Valley (at least to many of the people who want to replicate it). Key topics to be discussed are a habitat that is unmatched in its ability to create new firms and take ideas to market rapidly, the edge provided by communities of practice, the high quality and highly mobile labor force, the various roles of government in the rise of the Valley, and how changes in technology and markets have favored it. Henry S. Rowen is Director of the Asia/Pacific Research Center at Stanford University. He is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution and the Edward B. Rust professor emeritus at the University's Graduate School of Business. From 1989 to 1991, Rowen was the assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs in the U.S. Department of Defense. He was also chairman of the National Intelligence Council from 1981 to 1983, served as president of the RAND Corporation from 1968 to 1972 and was assistant director of the U.S. Bureau of the budget from 1965 to 1966. He recently was the editor of Behind East Asian Growth: The Political and Social Foundations of Prosperity, published by Routledge Press, 1998. At the present time, he is co-editing a book on how the Silicon Valley system of innovation and entrepreneurship works. The next phase of this project will examine high technology centers in Asia.